Dear John: reissues and reunions

Thirty years ago, I was a member of the St. Louis power pop trio Dear John. There were limited venues to play and little money to be made, but it was fun and exciting to be part of the small, vibrant local punk/power pop scene that had grown out of the late 70’s punk revolution. In early 1981, the three of us (Larry Wilke, George Schneller, and yours truly) entered a studio in Fenton to record several original songs that we could use as demos for record labels and club owners. We also pressed a 7″ single to sell at shows and local record stores.

“Frustrated Conversation” was released in the summer of 1981 but there was no active band to promote it – I was offered a job in Ft. Wayne, IN before the single came back from the pressing plant. My sudden departure from St. Louis caught the band by surprise, and short-circuited the whole thing.

So, the cool news??

BDR Records will be re-packaging the original 7″ vinyl pressing of “Frustrated Conversation” in a 30th Anniversary Edition complete with a new sleeve that will feature the original artwork and new liner notes. The details are still being worked out, but we are planning a companion digital-only release that will include much more material.

Even cooler news??

There will be one more Dear John show! Larry, George and I are going to perform together again for the first time in nearly 30 years on December 23, 2011 at Off Broadway in St. Louis.